Now You're Cooking!

By John Clark Photographs by Pat Haverfield
From the March-April 2009 issue of Scouting magazine

Scouting magazine presents the prize-winning recipes for entrées, side dishes, and desserts in our Great Tastes in Camp Cooking Contest.

When life hands you lemons, add lime and make dumplings.

OK, that might sound a little off-the-wall—that is, until you check out the Grand Prize-winning recipe in Scouting magazine’s Great Tastes in Camp Cooking Contest.

Back in 2008 we asked our BSA adult-volunteer readers to send in favorite recipes they’d field-tested in the great outdoors, ones that could be cooked over a charcoal or wood fire or by using a backpacking-style gas stove. Nearly 350 people from all across the United States submitted recipes in the three designated categories, Entrées, Side Dishes, and Desserts, including Martin A. Pessink of Pittsburg, Tex.

Just “for fun,” Pessink sent in a delectable doozy. The Venturing Crew 451 Advisor impressed us with a dessert deemed worthy of the top prize. He calls the culinary concoction Lemon-Lime Soda Apple Dumplings.

Martin A. Pessink

You can read the recipe for this Dutch-oven delight. But wait! If you want to know how it tastes—imagine the rich flavor of a wedge of Granny Smith apple, wrapped in a crescent roll, soaked in warm butter, and sprinkled with a heady dash of cinnamon and sugar, then doused in the effervescent sweetness of lemon-lime soda.

“Tart, Granny Smiths and the citrus in the soda complement each other better than other varieties of apples,” Pessink explains. “And the butter, cinnamon, and fruit flavors make you feel as if you’ve got your own little piece of apple pie.”

Yum! And that’s precisely what the judge we selected for our dessert entries thought.

H. Kent Rappleye, an Eagle Scout and president of the International Dutch Oven Society, notes that in addition to being quick and easy to prepare, Pessink’s dumplings deliver a flavor that’s “sweet but not overpowering.”

“This would be a good dish for a patrol to cook together on a camp-out,” Rappleye says. “They could get everything together, put the coals on, play a game of Capture the Flag, and gather back at camp for a light but delicious treat.”

Pessink, a longtime fan of Dutch-oven cooking, learned the secret of his dessert several years ago from a colleague during an outdoor Venturing crew training session. After tweaking the recipe a bit, he discovered that the kids in his Venturing crew loved the dumplings—despite some initial wariness.

“They weren’t sure the first time I made them,” he recalls, “but after the first taste they said, ‘Man, these are really good.’”

They’re especially popular with his crew during winter camp-outs, Pessink says—and not just for dessert. In fact, you might also call this Granny Smith dish the Daybreak Dumplings. “We’ll have them for breakfast,” Pessink says. “They’re a great get-you-started meal on really cold mornings.”

After reading all of our prize-winning recipes, don’t forget to get a little background on all the foodie folks who judged this edition of Scouting magazine’s Great Tastes in Camp Cooking Contest.

1. Use a Dutch oven large enough to accommodate all apples in one layer because they’ll rise/expand when cooking.

2. Cut each apple into eight pieces. Wrap each piece in one crescent roll.

3. Melt stick of butter in the bottom of the Dutch oven and roll each piece in the melted butter before placing them in the bottom of the pan.

4. Mix cinnamon and sugar and sprinkle the mixture over all apple pieces (mixing the sugar rather than just dusting the tops better incorporates the cinnamon flavor). Carefully add the soda so as not to wash away sugar from the dumplings.

5. Based on oven size, adjust the amount of briquettes on top and bottom and bake until dumplings turn golden brown (in conventional oven about 30 minutes at 350 degrees).

3. Cube the grilled chicken breasts into bite-size pieces and chop the grilled peppers, placing each, along with the tomatoes, onions, and garlic, in a Dutch oven with a capacity of at least six quarts.

1. While the coals heat up, lightly fry both sides of 12 corn tortillas in oil till slightly crispy (this will help them hold up during cooking). Layer tortillas between paper towels to drain off as much oil as possible, and set aside.

2. Combine shredded chicken, a third of the green sauce, sour cream, ranch-dressing mix, olives, and a third of the shredded cheese. Set mixture aside.

3. Line the Dutch oven with aluminum foil to make it easier to clean. Wet bottom of oven with some of the leftover green sauce and layer three tortillas, shredded-chicken mixture, some cheese, and more green sauce.

4. In that order, layer a couple of more times and top with the last of the tortillas, cheese, and green sauce. Cover and cook 30 minutes at 350 degrees until layers are heated through and cheese is melted.

5. Based on oven size, adjust the amount of briquettes on top and bottom—perhaps 4-6 for the bottom and 4 on top.

4. Add remainder of crabmeat to mix and pour entire contents of bowl over hash browns. Mixture will look thin at this point, but it rises and cooks up light and fluffy (Note: Egg mixture cooks better in a Dutch oven than beaten eggs alone.) Over egg mix, add mozzarella cheese.

5. For a more visual presentation, arrange 6 peeled jumbo shrimp on top like a pinwheel.

6. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese and paprika for color, and place pan in Dutch oven for 30-35 minutes. Cook until top is browned and an inserted knife blade comes out clean.

5. Cover the Dutch oven and remove some coals to bring liquid to a simmer. Simmer for about 20 minutes. Stir the mixture at 10 minutes.

6. Rice is done when all liquid is absorbed and rice is soft. If all the liquid is absorbed and rice is not soft, add additional liquid. When rice is done, add peas, pimientos, and beans. Stir and re-cover.

3. For topping, mix together the brown sugar, flour, and oatmeal. Add the butter and cut with two knives into coarse crumbs. Pour over apple filling.

4. Place cover on Dutch oven. Bake with 12-14 coals on bottom and 16-18 coals on top for one hour.

5. Enjoy as is or with a scoop of French vanilla ice cream.

Serves: 16.

Meet Our Judges

Tim and Christine ConnersEnthusiastic backpackers and outdoor-food fanatics, this husband-and-wife team hails from Statesboro, Ga. The couple wrote The Scout’s Outdoor Cookbook,Lipsmackin’ Backpackin’, and Lipsmackin’ Vegetarian Backpackin’ (Globe-Pequot Press). When they aren’t camping, hiking, or kayaking, Tim designs airplanes and Christine teaches psychology. They live with their four children in Statesboro, Ga., where the two oldest boys are members of Troop 340 and Tim serves as an adult volunteer.

Candy Sagon
This former food writer with The Washington Post writes the popular “Easy Eats” column for Scouting magazine, reviews restaurants for the Post, and contributes articles on food and health topics to various national publications and Web sites. Candy lives in the Washington, D.C., area with her husband, Gary L. Klein. She’s also a veteran cooking-contest official, having judged everything from hometown pie-baking competitions to national chili cook-offs to the Pillsbury Bake-Off.

H. Kent Rappleye
Kent is president of the International Dutch Oven Society. An Eagle Scout and Vigil Honor member of the Order of the Arrow, he paid his dues on innumerable camping and backpacking trips as a youth. But he says his first exposure to Dutch-oven techniques came later, with a cherry cobbler cooked on a camp-out with his wife’s (Nancy) family. In 2006, Kent and Nancy placed fifth in the society’s World Championship Cook-Off. The Rappleyes have three sons, all Eagle Scouts. They live in Ogden, Utah.

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